Horticultural spray oil



it Nov. 19, 1940 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE No Drawing. ApplicationJune 2'7, 1936,

- Serial No. 87,736

9 Claims.

lhe invention relates to hydrocarbon oil and water emulsions such asused for horticultural spray purposes and more particularly to theinclusion in the hydrocarbon oil of certain toxicants.

As will be understood, hydrocarbon or petroleum oils have beenextensively used in water emulsions for horticultural spray purposes forthe control of insecticides and other parasites. In the case of some ofthe more resistant parasites the hydrocarbon oil must be used inrelatively heavy deposits to insure a complete killing, or at least, aneffective control of the parasite and such deposits are, in manyinstances, unsafe for the plant tissues. For this reason, it is commonto include in hydrocarbon oil certain toxic materials which have beenfound to be specific for the control of certain insecticides andparasites and the use of which enables substantial reductions in therequired hydrocarbon oil deposit. For many years nitrophenols have beenknown to possess insecticidal properties. Various of these nitrophenolshave been used by themselves as insecticides, the most outstandingmembers of the family which have been used, being potassium 3-5dinitro-ortho-cresylate, the ammonium and potassium salts of 3-5dinitro-ortho-cresol and 3-5 dinitro-ortho-paracresol, ortho and paradinitrophenol, dinitroparachlorophenol anddinitro-ortho-cyclohexylphenol.

While these toxicants by themselves have been used with varying. successas insecticides, ovicides and scalicides, they have heretofore neverapproached their optimum lethal properties when combined with ahydrocarbon oil in a water and oil spray emulsion. I have found that onthe addition of these nitrophenols to various types of oil and waterspray emulsions, a considerable portion of the toxicant withdraws fromthe oil phase of the emulsions and passes over to the water phase.Accordingly,'while a considerable proportion of the toxicant may beadded to the spray material only a very small fraction remains in theoil phase, while the remainder is carried oh the plant structure by thewater following the breaking of the emulsion. In accordance with thepresent invention, and as one of the principal objects thereof, Iintroduce means into the spray composition to prevent the transfer ofthe toxicant from the oil to the water phase as aforesaid, wherebysubstantially the entire proportion of the toxicant will remain with theoil on the plant structure and the full benefit of the toxicant therebyreceived. 7

As a further object of the present invention, 1

provide, in the petroleum oil and water horticultural spray emulsion ofthe character described, an intermediate solvent which is efiective toin:- crease the solubility of the nitrophenols in the oil phase of theemulsions, whereby certain of 5 these nitrophenols, which are ordinarilyonly sparingly soluble in the petroleum oil, may be added insufficiently large quantities to realize a maximum toxicity of the oiland nitrophenol combination.

The invention possesses other objects and features of advantage, some ofwhich, with the foregoing will be set forth in the following descriptionof the preferred form of the invention. it is to be understood, however,that variations in the mode of effecting the invention, as explained inthe description, may be adapted within the scope of the invention as setforth in the claims.

More specifically I have found that the nitrophenols may be held in theoil phase of the hydrocarbon oil and water spray emulsion by the use ofan acidic emulsifying agent, and that in addition, by the use of certainvegetable and animal oils a greater amount of the nitrophenols can bedissolved in or exclusively carried by the hydrocarbon phase of theemulsion. Of the various derivatives or substituted products obtainedfrom the nitrophenol parent, I have found that the most effective aredinitro-ortho-cyclohexylphenol, dinitro-ortho-cresol, anddinitro-parachlorophenol. Dinitro -ortho cyclohexylphenol may be atpresent obtained with either a 2-4 or a 3-5 arrangement of the N02radical, and while either appears to be a highly effective toxicant forcertain types of parasite control, preferably 35 the 2-4 arrangement or,more specifically, the 2- 4 dinitro-fi-cyclohexylphenol has certainadvantages, due to its greater solubility in hydrocarbon or petroleumoil and in having a slightly better toxicity.

The result of present tests indicate a general superiority ofdinitro-orth-o-cyclohexylphenol, but as above stated, the dinitrocresoland the dinitroparachlorophenol are also effective in many instances.The former, dinitrocresol, may be used in either the ortho or the parapositions of the nitro atoms and the ammonium and potassium salts ofthese compounds are also effective, as above indicated.

A relatively small amount of the above toxicant in the hydrocarbon oilis all that is required in most instances to produce a substantiallycomplete killing of the parasite and also enables substantial reductionsin the amount of hydrocarbon oil required in the spray mixlid Qii

ture. I have found that from one-half to one and one-half per centtoxicant in the oil, is, for the most part, sufficient although ifdesired, and for certain types of work, may be increased over thisvalue. As above indicated, the addition of a toxicant to the oil enablesa substantial reduction in the amount of oil which is required in thespray mixture, and which, in accordance with the present invention, mayvary from onequarter to approximately three per cent of the watercontent for ordinary spray work. In the case of dormant spray thisproportion of oil may ordinarily be considerably increased withoutinjury to the plants.

Together with the toxicant and the hydrocarbon oil is embodied an acidreacting oil soluble emulsifier agent in the proportion ranging fromapproximately one-half to one per cent of the hydrocarbon oil.'Particularly good results have been obtained by the use of anemulsifier consisting of approximately fifty per cent naphthenic acidand fifty per cent sulphonated naphthenic acid. This emulsifier has beenmore specifically set forth and claimed in my co-pending application,Serial Number 752,990, filed November 14, 1934. While I prefer'thisparticular acid reacting emulsifier, others may be used, such as glycololeate, glycerol oleate, oleic acid, etc.

I have further found that the solubility of the nitrophenols inhydrocarbon oil may be substantially increased by the use of anintermediate solvent for the nitrophenols and the hydrocarbon oil. Thisis particularly important in the case of the more insoluble nitrophenolsand where the hydrocarbon oil is of a highly refined type having a highunsulphonatable residue. More specifically I have found that certainfatty oils will act as an intermediate solvent to considerably increasethe solubility of the nitrophenols in the hydrocarbon oil. Among thevegetable group of the fatty oils are soya bean kettled oil, varnishmakers hempseed oil, raw tung oil, and certain blended bodied vegetableoils, such as used forpaint purposes. Of the animal group, fish oils arepreferable and of these I prefer a boiled vacuum kettled sardine oil,although fairly satisfactory results have been obtained by the use ofother fish oils, such as herring oil. The proportion of theseintermediateoil solvents depends to some extent, upon the naturalsolubility of the toxicant and the desired concentration of the toxicantin the oil. For example, in the case of 3-5dinitro-orthocycylohexylphenol, which is very sparingly soluble inhydrocarbon oil the amount of this compound which may be dissolved in orcarried by the hydrocarbon oil may be changed from approximately 0.3%without the use of the intermediate oil solvent to approximately 1.0% bythe addition of approximately 3 to 5% of the intermediate solvent to thehydrocarbon oil.

For the other nitrophenol toxicants above mentioned, the proportion ofthe intermediate oil solvent in the hydrocarbon oil may vary from 2% to7% depending on the specific solvency of the intermediate solvent, therelative solubility of the toxicant and the amount of toxicant desiredin the oil.

The presence of the intermediate oil solvent in the hydrocarbon oil,especially where the former is composed of a boiled, blown orpolymerized oil, has a further beneficial effect in partially settinginto a cellular structure on being sprayed and in holding thehydrocarbon oil against undue penetration into the plant tissues. Thislatter operation of certain of these oils has been more fully describedin my copending application, Serial Number 24,359, filed May 31, 1935.

I claim:

1. An oleaginous product adapted for mixing with water for producing ahorticultural spray comprising, a hydrocarbon oil, adinitro-orthocyclohexylphenol, and an acidic emulsifying agentconsisting of a combination of a naphthenic acid and a sulphonatednaphthenic acid.

2. An oleaginous, product adapted for mixing with waterfor producing ahorticultural spray emulsion comprising, a hydrocarbon oil, anitrophenol, a fatty oil intermediate solvent for said nitrophenol andsaid hydrocarbon oil.

3. An oleaginous product adapted for mixing with water for producing ahorticultural spray emulsion comprising, a hydrocarbon oil, anitrophenol, a vegetable oil intermediate solvent for said nitrophenoland said hydrocarbon oil, and an emulsifying agent.

4. An oleaginous product adapted for mixing with water for producing ahorticultural spray emulsion comprising, ahydrocarbon oil, anitrophenol, a fish oil intermediate solvent for said nitrophenol andsaid hydrocarbon oil, and an emulsifying agent.

5. An oleaginous product adapted for mixing with water for producing ahorticultural spray comprising, a hydrocarbon oil, 2-4 dinitro 6cyclohexylphenol, naphthenic acid, sulphonated naphthenic acid, and afish oil intermediate solvent for said 2-4 dinitro 6 cyclohexylphenoland said hydrocarbon oil.,

6. An oleaginous product adapted for mixing with Water for producing ahorticultural spray comprising, a hydrocarbon oil, adinitro-orthocyclohexylphenol, an acidic emulsifier, and an unsaturatedfatty oil intermediate solvent ior said dinitro-ortho-cyclohexylphenoland said hydrocarbon oil.

'7. An oleaginous product adapted for mixing with water for producing ahorticultural spray comprising, a hydrocarbon oil, a nitrophenol, anacidic emulsifier, and an unsaturated fatty oil intermediate solvent forsaid nitrophenol and said hydrocarbon oil.

8. An oleaginous product adapted for mixing with water for producing ahorticultural spray comprising, a hydrocarbon oil, a dinitrocresol, anacidic emulsifier, and an unsaturated fatty oil intermediate solvent forsaid dinitrocresol and said hydrocarbon oil.

9. An oleaginous product adapted for mixing with Water for producing ahorticultural spray comprising, a hydrocarbon oil, a nitrophenol, anacidic emulsifier, and an unsaturated vegetable oil intermediate solventfor said nitrophenol and said hydrocarbon oil.

FRANK F. LINDSTAEDT.

